Of Appendixes and Waffles
by Moose Waffles
Summary: I've never been one to believe in conspiracies, but when I become part of one...Well, I can't really be sure of what to believe anymore.  Self-insert.
1. Prologue

**(A/N: Yes, another self-insert. And by someone who's terribly inexperienced at writing. Ah well. Maybe it'll be fun, maybe it'll be crap. Who knows…Probably crap.**

**Ah well. A tip of my metaphorical hat to both Herr Wozzeck and iNf3ctioNZ for inspiring me to do this. By the way, the first section was written a very long time ago and the writing style MAY change ever so slightly in the rest of the chapter. But I don't really know. Seriously, it's late and I can't be bothered to check.**

**Random disclaimer stuff: Mass Effect, its characters, and everything in its universe is not owned by me. 'Tis owned by Bioware. And I don't own any random things I may reference (bands, sodas, cheeses etc.))**

The appendix. No, not that part at the end of a book that never has what you're looking for. I mean the equally useless part of your colon. I never really paid it much attention until today. Why today? Because today it decided to rupture…Or at least almost rupture. Hopefully they'll get it out before then.

They've put me on an I.V. with some painkillers. At least I think that's what it's for. I'm not sure anymore. I don't really care either. People tend to not care about much of anything when all they've been doing for the past couple hours is sleep and vomit I guess. The pain has subsided though, so I guess they've given me something for it. The surgeon strides into my tiny hospital room, looking very business-like. I wonder if he's ticked off he had to come in on a Sunday? I figure he gets calls like this a lot though.

He's talking to Mom about something. Oh yeah, did I mention Mom's here? I think I forgot to. He walks over to me, and begins pushing on my left side.

"Where does it hurt more?" he asks, moving his hand from my left to my right. The pressure issues a groan from me. "Yeah, it's appendicitis."

Well what the hell did you think it is? I just have a little tummy ache? Sheesh!

He's saying something to Mom again. Something about immediate surgery. Surgery…I've never had surgery before. This is weird. How did this happen? I'm fourteen for crying out loud! I shouldn't be having my appendix out!

The surgeon steps out and two older ladies wheel in another hospital bed. "Can you move yourself over onto this bed here?" one of them says as they scoot it up next to mine.

"Sure. Why not?" I mutter. I'm not in the cheeriest of moods. I don't think anyone would be in my situation.

They wheel me out down the hallway, my mom following. They reach some rather imposing metal doors, at which they stop. "You'll have to say goodbye here," one says to my mom.

She holds my hand and kisses my forehead. "I'll see you later, sweetie."

"Bye," I manage to choke out. Dang it, why am I choking up? It's just a little surgery, that's all. Nothing big. No big deal. No big deal…

She finally releases my hand as the double doors swing open and the nurses resume their journey to the operating room.

"I love you."

"I love you too!" I call back, with some effort. I feel my eyes tear up slightly. Oh no. I am not crying. There's nothing to cry about. No need to be dramatic.

It's just one depressing white hallway after the next until we reach the operating room. They wheel the bed next to the table. "Can you move yourself onto here?" one of them asks.

"I believe so," I reply, gently scooting onto the table. Dang, it's cold in here. Someone places a blanket over my legs, as if on cue.

"I'm going to put this mask over your face. When I do, I want you to start counting to ten, alright?"

" 'kay." Mask…Is that the anesthetic? I've never been knocked out before. Probably because I've never had surgery before. I wonder if I'm going to have a big scar…No, they'll probably make a little hole and just pull it out from there.

While I'm contemplating the possibility of scarring, the nurse…well, I guess more A nurse, places a plastic breathing mask thingy on my face. My vision instantly blurs. Dang, that was fast! I should probably be counting now. "One. Two. Three." My hearing starts getting hazy, like all the rest of my senses. "Four. Five…"

Well, I guess I'm supposed to close my eyes now.

…

That wasn't too bad. I didn't wake up during surgery at least. So that's nice.

But…where did I wake up?

Slowly open eyes…ok, there are blinding lights in this room. Why are the lights blinding? I wasn't under for that long…

Adjusting, adjusting…Alright, I can see now. Awesome.

…Or not.

Right, so this is the part where I start wondering why I'm on a table in the middle of a bare white room…And why there's a window on the wall to my left.

And why the guy behind it is freaking out.

Aaand why I'm strapped down to said table.

It looks like he's trying to communicate with someone via intercom.

Oh, god! Why did trying to speak just now result in a coughing fit? And on top of all that…

Where the hell am I?

God my head hurts! Why did it just start hurting now? Was it the extreme coughing? Did…What? Everything's dark now. Why is it dark? What just-SHIT! My head feels like it's about to explode! And that goddamn siren isn't helping! Why is there a siren anyway? And those annoying red lights? All I want to know is where the hell I am!

Footsteps? Someone just came in the room. I look to my left, and see that same guy that was behind the window walking (rather quickly) to my table. Finally, I can get some answers. Hopefully I won't start coughing again.

"Where-…" God, not the coughing again. Speak! Speak damn you! "Where am I?" There! And don't say no hablo ingles!

"Jag talar inte engelska."

Wha...What? What the fuck does that mean? He puts his finger to his lips in a shush sign, and starts undoing my restraints. Ok, at least I'm not naked. Though I am in this weird hospitalish gown-like thing...

I manage to sit up with some effort, and look at the man to my left to see him motion for me to follow him. Great, so I'm supposed to follow a strange german man through a strange not-quite-hospital in a strange not-quite-gown? And he looks like he's in his twenties, so he could probably overpower me with ease. This can't be good. He seems to be pretty excited about something...Also pretty freaked out too. I'm with him on the freaked out part. And...wait, what the crap is he wearing? It looks like the generic doctors outfit from Mass Effect. Why the hell would he be wearing that?

Looks like I've been thinking too long. He's getting anxious. Alright, I'll follow you you crazy blonde haired blue eyed Nazi. That was racist, wasn't it? Crap.

I jump off the table and proceed to follow him out the door. I wasn't expecting to feel this energetic right after surgery...Oh look, long hallway with flashing red lights and sirens blaring in my ears. Fun. He starts to run, and I follow. Did something go wrong somewhere? I hear a voice amidst the sirens and footsteps, but it sounds like spanish. Spanish? Wasn't this guy speaking some sort of germanic language? Evacuar...sounds like evacuate. What happened? Where's Mom? God I hope she's ok.

He turns right down another hallway, and left down yet another. Is this whole building just a collection of hallways? He suddenly stops in front of a door, and starts fumbling with a...what is that? It looks like a glowy hologramy keypad thing. Why is it glowy? Keypads don't glow!

The door opens with a loud woosh, and reveals...Holy...Is that...a spaceship?

In a docking bay?

With a frickin' salarian in front of it?

...

This is not my day.

**(A/N: Right, so I would add more, but again, it's late, and I want to get this thing up after months of delaying. So let me know if it's decent, if it sucks, whatever. Hopefully this will turn into an epic adventure-like thing...But for now, it's late.)**


	2. In Which Things are Explained

**(A/N: Huh. I'm actually making another chapter. Weird. But awesome.**

**Fun fact: I actually did have my appendix out last year. And most (if not all) of the dialogue for that part actually happened. And my last thought before going under actually was "Well, I guess I'm supposed to close my eyes now." I find that incredibly awesome.**

**Anyway, on to more confusion!)**

So…I'm in a video game? That's just…that's just stupid. Why…? This ship is…huge…

I'm shaken from my gawking by Mr. German, who seems very relieved once I snap out of it. The salarian's over here too now. Is it me or is he pissed? Judging from his yelling at Mr. German I'd say he's royally pissed. I thought we were all supposed to be freaked out here, not pissed off. Ooh, that's one nasty look he just shot me. What'd I do anyway? I'm the one that can't understand a word you're saying. Man, salarian languages sound weird. It sounds like his mouth is numb or something. Ok, he seems exasperated now. Are we going-OW! I have an idea of where we're going! You don't have to grab my arm with the force of an industrial crusher!

So this guy reeeally doesn't like me. For some reason. He leads me into the ship with Mr. German following behind us, looking rather dejected. Ok, airlock time. Oh! This voice actually speaks English! Sure, all it's saying is "Decontamination in progress," but still! I cough slightly from the vapors being vented in, which results in the already iron grip on my arm tightening. Gah, it's like he's trying to take my blood pressure. With…his hand…oh I don't know, I think I'm delirious.

Another whoosh noise as the door into the actual ship part opens, and I'm practically dragged inside by Sir Grumpy, who seems to be leading me to…somewhere. Man, my teeth feel awfully smooth…Where'd my braces go? And for that matter, where'd my glasses go? And how can I see without them? Maybe I'm just high off anesthetic? Is that even possible? No, that's just stupid. That wouldn't affect my vision anyway. At least not in a good way.

Yet another whoosh noise (I'm never going to get used to that, am I?) takes me into what looks like a conference room. Except it looks more like the one on the Normandy. With people staring at me. Great.

So it's three humans and one asari all looking at me like I shouldn't exist. Granted, that's the way I'm looking at them, but still. One of the humans stands up and slowly approaches me. He looks very…grandpa-like. Gray hair, friendly expression, slightly wrinkled face. He notices my arm, which has been gradually turning blue due to Sir Grumpy's iron claw gripping it tightly, and removes the salarian's hand rather violently, giving him a vicious glare. That's what you get for trying to rip teenager's arms off, you jerk! The older man resumes his grandpa expression as he turns back to me. He grasps my hand in a warm welcome.

"Welcome back."

…What? "I don't recall ever being here in the first place," I reply. At least I can manage to be somewhat witty while trying to figure out what's going on. Even though I basically just stated the truth.

Ah well, it gets a chuckle from him at least. "True, true…" He seems to be looking me over. Ugh. I'm getting creeped out now.

I remove my hand from his hold and ask, "So, am I crazy, dreaming, high, or all of the above?"

"None of the above, actually," he replies. He gently clasps his hands on my shoulders and turns me around to face Mr. German. Now I get the feeling he's looking at my back. God I feel violated right now. "Good, good…" Well I'm glad you're happy you creepy grandpa. He turns me around again and says, "Now, I imagine you have quite a few questions to ask of us," I open my mouth, but he raises his hand to cut me off. "Which will all be answered in due time, but for now, your physical health is what's important."

My physical health? Seriously? "I feel fine! Better than ever!" Actually, there's more truth to that statement than there should be. Even after running through all those hallways I feel like I could run a marathon. Hell, maybe even sprint a marathon. I…don't remember ever feeling this energetic, actually. He starts to talk again, but I'm there first saying, "Could you at least give me a translatey thingy? So I can understand Mr. German back here?"

The grandpa looks at said German man for the first time, chuckles and says, "Of course, though I think he would be rather insulted if he knew you called him German."

Huh? "He's not?"

"No, no. He's Swedish." Ah, Swedish! I should've known. Now I'll have to ask him if he knows Movits. "We'll give you something to break the language barrier in the med bay. If you would come with me?" He walks out the door, with me and Mr. Swedish following. Man, he looks excited. So does this grandpa guy, really. Just more subtly.

A few more whooshes and stares later, we arrive in the med bay. And…yeah, judging from all the glowy medical equipment, I'm definitely tripping on something here.

Grandpa tells me to sit on the examining table, and goes to fetch the doctor. I thought he was a doctor? Hell, isn't everyone here a doctor? And…now Mr. Swedish is staring at me, looking like he just won the Nobel Prize. Either he's a very happy person, or he just did actually do something Nobel worthy. I'd say teleporting someone between universes is pretty damn Nobel worthy, if that's what he's so happy about. So if I'm in the Mass Effect world, am I supposed to join up with Shepard? No, I can't really do that. I'm a teenager with no battle or firearm experience who's only talent is music. That doesn't really sound like "galaxy saving hero". What year is it anyway? It'd be nice to know what point in the game we're at right now…

Whoosh goes the door, and in comes Grandpa and that asari that was in the meeting room thing. What is that thing she's holding? Looks like…god I don't even know. It's sort of like a syringe, but instead of a needle it has a little bit of machinery on it. She walks around to my side, unzips my gown partially and-wait, there's a zipper back there? GAH! The crap was that? It felt like she just rammed something into my spine! For god's sake!

"That should do it," she says rather smugly. So that was the translator?

"You could've warned me first!" Sheesh! I don't like you already, and you've only said one sentence to me.

"Don't be such a baby," she replies, zipping my gown back up. "You're going to need to toughen up if I'm supposed to train you."

Ung? "Train me? For what?" Pie eating contests? In which case you should probably know I don't eat much anyway.

She raises an eyebrow and looks at Grandpa. "You didn't tell her anything?"

Grandpa desperately tries to make up an excuse, saying, "I just thought that maybe you should be the one to explain things to her. And I wanted to make sure she didn't overexert herself in the run to the ship."

The asari sighs and mutters something about competence. "You've at least introduced yourself?" she asks, not even bothering to grace him with her gaze. Seriously, if I have to spend long periods of time with this lady I'm going to develop an inferiority complex.

"Well…no…" Grandpa turns to me and holds out his hand apologetically. "William Cushing. Pleased to meet you."

"Yeah, same here," I reply, shaking his hand. Though I'm not really that pleased to meet you, since I still think you're kind of creepy. Heck, everyone here's pretty creepy. But your last name is cool. It's like Peter Cushing, the guy in those Hammer horror movies with the funky cheekbones. It's one of the few actor names I know since I think he's…cute? That's not really the word for it. I guess attractive fits. Now, Tom Hiddleton on the other hand, that's what you call cute. It's a shame he played the bad guy in Thor. Ah well.

"And I'm Markus," the Swedish man says quietly.

"Nice to meet you too." I am happier about meeting you, actually. You're the only one that hasn't looked me over in a disturbing fashion. Much appreciated.

"And you may address me as Madam."

…Really? You think that much of yourself you won't even give me your name? "Okay then, MADAM, I've got a few questions for you, if I may. Actually, never mind that last bit, because I'm going to ask them whether you want me to or not. First of all, where am I, second of all, who are you people, and last of all-" AGH! God damn it! I clutch my head with both hands and manage to finish my thought, "Last of all, why does my head feel like it's about to explode!"

Madam sighs and says (in a manner that implies I should've known this obvious fact and I'm an idiot for asking such a stupid question), "Because you're getting worked up. And if you-"

"Oh, so I'm getting a frickin' migraine! You expect me to buy that!" SHIT! It's getting worse! I'm doubled over and-…

Are…

Are my arms glowing?

I remove one hand from my head to get a look at it, and it's definitely glowing. It's pulsing along with this fucking pain in my skull, and it looks like…

My god…

I'm a biotic?

"Look, if you don't get a hold of yourself there's a very real possibility of you tearing this entire ship apart," Madam says, with an ever-so-slight hint of worry in her voice.

But how…

My sudden realization apparently caused both the pain and the glowing to stop, and I sit back up slowly. "What the hell did you do to me?"

William, feeling the need to step in here, says, "Now this may be a bit of a difficult concept for you, but you are what we call a biotic. Now, biotics are-" Madam shoots him a look so terrifying he's instantly reduced to a blubbering idiot and falls silent.

"That's enough, gentlemen. You may leave now," she says, the venom practically dripping off her words.

The two men scurry out, leaving me alone with Miss Know-It-All. "Now then, I've got a few suspicions of my own about you." Oh crap, that can't be good. What could she possibly suspect me for? Being too freaked out? "That explanation wasn't entirely necessary, was it?"

I…what? "About biotics. You know perfectly well what biotics are, don't you?" She leans in close to me, an air of knowing about her. "Let me make something perfectly clear to you. You aren't here by chance. You're here to serve as a guide and a soldier." I think she notices my 'What the Crap Just Happened' face, because she smirks and stands up straight again. "Of course, if you can't tell the future, I've been instructed to dispose of you."

Is she bluffing? And what future does she want me to tell? "I…can tell Shepard's future, if that's what you want…But, uh, immediate future I can't really…um…"

Her expression suddenly becomes lighter, and she says in a softer tone, "Then you're just what we're looking for. But you must be tired from all this information being dumped on you at once. I'll show you to your room. We still have a while before we reach our destination, so you'll have plenty of time to process all of this."

I slump off the table, and follow her out the door to what looks like a room in a psychiatric hospital, minus the padded walls. "This will be your room for the time being. The bathroom is out the door directly to your left. There are some clothes for you on the table beside your bed there. You shouldn't be hungry, but if you are you can simply push this button here to call up some food. If you are seen wandering about the ship, you will be locked in this room until we reach our destination. Any questions?"

Just one… "Why were there sirens going off in that place I woke up in?"

"It was to warn the crew members of the facility that it was about to self destruct to destroy the evidence," she replies nonchalantly. "Anything else?"

"No."

"Very well then. Your training will begin as soon as we arrive, so make sure you're ready by then." And with that, the door closes behind her, and I'm left alone in my lovely white room.

With nothing else to do but ponder the life I have just lost, I curl up on the bed and cry quietly.

**(A/N: Very uplifting ending there. So yeah. I never really realized how nice it is for an author to get reviews until I read those I'd gotten. And man, is it nice (not-so-subtle hint there).**

**Hopefully that chapter made sense. If not…crap.**

**Up next, figuring out how the hell biotics work! Should be fun.**

**And if anyone can tell me why I can't type a question mark next to an exclamation mark and if there's a fix for it, let me know.)**


	3. In Which Conspiracies are Unveiled

...

This is just pathetic.

Alright, pull yourself together. There we go. Sit up. Crying never got anything done. Regain composure.

Right then. So, let's see…I've been basically abducted by a mysterious organization that wants me to…What'd she say again? 'To serve as a guide and a soldier'? A guide…So I assume I'll be on the Normandy at some point. But to be a useful soldier I'll need some training first. Or maybe a lot of training. I'm not sure. She did say training would start as soon as we arrived at…wherever it is we're going.

How did this all happen? One minute I'm having my appendix out, the next I'm being threatened by a bitchy asari. And it sounds like they already know at least some of the future, considering they want me to tell Shepard's. I mean, depending on what year this is, Shepard isn't terribly notable. Well, actually she probably is, but still…At least I hope it's a she…I don't think I'd be able to handle male shep's voice screaming in my ear all the time.

I'm starting to feel vulnerable in this gown. She said there are clothes on the table? Ah. White. Big surprise. I swear I'm a test subject to these people. Though generally there's more than one test subject…Maybe…God I don't know. For all I know there could be hundreds of people they've taken. Where am I supposed to put this gown anyway? Ah, I'll just throw it on the bed here. Right. So now I'm in my stylish white t-shirt and my extremely fashionable white shorts. They're kind of like jammie bottoms really…

I wonder… Why didn't she lock the door? She could've just locked it and made me call someone to escort me to the bathroom. It's almost like…

An invitation.

So I assume I just poke this green thing in front of the door. Whoosh! That did it. Carefully poke head out. Nothing to the left, how about the right?

"Hey!"

Crap.

At least it's Markus walking up to me. He's not that bad. At least for a guy who works for a crazy transdimensional kidnapping agency.

He gets close enough to talk without having to shout and says, "I was just coming to get you. She said you're supposed to be briefed before we arrive." Oh.

"What else do I need to know? You implanted chicken DNA into me and I need to be taught how to lay eggs?"

He laughs nervously, and looks away from me. "Yeah, sorry about the biotic thing. But don't worry," he looks back at me with a cheerful expression, "no more surprises like that."

Right. At least that you're willing to tell me about right now. "Sure. Let's just get going."

And we're off. Why is everything in this ship white? I feel like I need shades. The clothes are mostly white, the equipment is white, and the entire thing is painted white for god's sake. It's like I'm at Aperture Laboratories. Any minute now I bet a creepy voice is going to start calling me fat. God, Markus, could you up the speed from sea turtle in a parking lot to maybe armadillo with heat stroke? Actually, I wonder which would be faster in that matchup. I guess it depends on how bad the heat stroke is, because armadillos can actually be pretty fast.

Oh, we're here. I guess pondering the speed of armadillos occupied me. Looks like we're back in the conferencey room thingy. I really need to stop describing things as thingies. Thing works perfectly fine, adding an extra Y is just stupid. Let's see who we've got here. Madam's standing in the middle, and it looks like she's surrounded by about seven humans, all wearing…the same thing I am…And they look like they're all between 16 and their late twenties, and…

Wait…

Seriously?

"Subject 2, have a seat," Madam says, looking at me and gesturing to a chair. Is…Is she talking to me? I look back at Markus, who nods and gives me a gentle nudge. I walk to the chair, feeling everyone's eyes on me, and sit quietly.

Madam walks to where the council linkup would be and turns to look at all of us. "That will be all, Markus."

Markus gives a nervous yes ma'am and retreats from her gaze.

"Now then," she begins, placing her hands behind her back, "for those of you who are unaware, I am to be addressed as Madam. And in case you haven't figured it out yet, you are very far from where you came from." Understatement of the year. "As to why you are here, you are here to be trained for the events to come. All of you know of Shepard's future, and you are here to serve as guides to ensure that future comes to be."

The 16-year old raises his hand and asks, "So are we all going to join Shepard?"

This issues a glare from Madam who growls, "Questions at the end, please." He shrinks back into his chair and apologizes quietly. Yeah, I wouldn't interrupt her if I were you.

"In answer to your question, no. You shall be spread throughout the galaxy at key points to guarantee things happen the way they should. If a person is supposed to die at a certain point, you must ensure that person does in fact die where he should." What? Just about everyone starts to protest, but the uprising is quickly silenced by a raise of the Madam's hand. "There is reasoning behind this, understand. We can't know what will happen unless a strict plan is followed. If people live or die outside of this plan, victory is uncertain. That's why you're here. Shepard may be a hero to the public, but you," she sweeps her arms in front of her, "are the real saviors of the galaxy."

"Now, we have an estimated 4 months to get all of you ready for your assigned positions. We have arrived at Skyrim, which will be your home for those months. You each have your own trainer who will be teaching you what you need to know. Once Eden Prime is attacked, you will be sent to your stations. We will ensure that you are integrated seamlessly and provide you with IDs, full background history, family and friend connections and anything else you might need to seem like you've always been here." Damn, how far-reaching are these guys?

"Questions?" She looks at the 16-year old, who turns red and shakes his head vigorously. I raise my hand.

"Why are there so many of us? I mean, there aren't that many major missions to justify eight people."

"In the immediate future, true. But don't forget the second chapter in the story." The second chapter? Oh, the second game. Yeah, there are a lot of people Shepard needs to get. Not to mention loyalty missions. "And it's much better to have too many than too few. Even as it is all of you will need to be reused once Shepard returns. Anything else?"

A girl that looks like she's in her mid-twenties raises her hand and asks, "What happens after? Can we go home?"

"That depends on whether or not we have the technology developed at that point," Madam replies, making it clear she wasn't going to explain how they brought us here in the first place.

Another person of around the same age but male asks, "Are you ever going to ask us our names?"

"Everyone you meet in the future will be calling you by name, but I will not be. It's easier for me to remember numbers."

That's…kind of rude. But I'm bad at names too, so I guess I'm not really one to talk. Oh, just thought of a pretty obvious question… "Why go to so much trouble to make sure things go to plan? Is there something trying to change the future?"

"I am not at liberty to answer that question."

She seems like she's getting slightly annoyed, but an 18 or 19-year old guy manages to raise his hand and ask the question everyone else was too afraid to. "How do you already know so much of the future?"

"Note that the lowest subject number in this room is 2." Cryptic. And creepy.

With everyone too afraid to press her any further, she begins to walk towards the door. "Your trainers will come by to pick you up, so don't leave this room. Subject 2, follow me." Which one was I…Oh, I'm 2! I get up and follow her out the door and to the airlock. She said we were at Skyrim, right? That's awesome. If there's a planet named Skyrim, that almost makes up for missing the game.

The door opens to reveal…more white. Wow. So we're in a space station? Or maybe just a really contained research facility. Either way, I can't say I'm looking forward to living here, even if it is called Skyrim. Through another door into a big…looks like a sort of replication of a battle field. Except everything's white and sterile looking.

She stops next to a chair near the middle of the room and turns to me. "The first thing a new biotic must grasp is the generation and focusing of energy to create desired effects." Whoa! Biotic flare! I guess she was trying to demonstrate, but all I really get out of that is a healthy dose of awesome. "You were doing this involuntarily earlier, and surprisingly well. Try to remember how you got that energy and see if you can get it again." Ok, but…

"But my head…"

She sighs and says, "That's because you weren't focusing it, you were just letting it collect in your skull. The pulsing flare ups you were having was your body trying to release the energy. That's what biotic flares are, the generation of energy and then letting it dissipate." Oh, ok then. Right, generation of energy. I did feel pretty hyper then, and I still feel just as hyper really. Uh…

Well, my head is starting to hurt vaguely. I guess that means I'm heading in the right direction. Let's try putting on some suitable music in my brain-radio. Queen would do nicely I think. I Want it All? Yeah, that's good. So we got some blood-pumping music going on, and my-Oh, oh god. It's getting worse. Definitely getting worse.

"Ok, now bring that energy out. Bring it down from your head and let it disperse throughout your body and create a flare." Right, don't let your head explode. Bring it down…Oh! I'm flaring! Cool! And…a strangely long flare too, but still. Most flares last maybe a couple seconds, but that was about five. Dang.

"Impressive." Garrus! Every time I hear the word impressive I think of Garrus shouting it across the battlefield. "You seem to have a knack for creating and storing energy, but have some trouble releasing it." You figured all that out already? I wasn't really paying attention to my strengths and weaknesses though, so I don't really know what I'm talking about.

She has me flare a few more times, and once she's satisfied she says, "Let's start working on using this energy rather than just wasting it. We'll start with push, since if you mess it up you won't risk pulling something into yourself at high speeds." Good plan. "To push an object, you will first need to direct your biotic energy into one arm, preferably whichever one you're better at throwing with. Once you get the energy there, you must concentrate on releasing it all at once in the form of a powerful wave of energy. This is how basically all powers work, except you tweak how you release it for different effects. Watch me." She takes a few steps back from the chair she was standing by, flares up and with a quick shoving motion of her arm, the chair slams into the wall with a decisive BAM.

"How come you flared first?" I thought she said that the release of energy without using it was a flare.

"It's only natural that some energy is lost. No process is one-hundred percent efficient." Ah. I guess it's my turn now. "And remember, it's important not to leave concentrated energy anywhere in your body for more than a few seconds."

She uses a pull to bring the chair back, stands it upright, and backs up for me to try. Rightio, let's see here. Music, throbbing, bring it to the arm. Pull arm back, shove, and…

BAM! Damn, that was a loud one. She even jumped at the noise. "That was…Well, at least we know you don't have any trouble with creating power. Let's see if we can rein that in a bit."

So we practice fine tuning it, which doesn't really go well. I tend to go for extremes, either making it barely a nudge or slamming it into the wall like I'm trying to break through it. I think the wall is actually dented from where I kept pounding it.

"I really don't think it would be safe to do anything else until we find some middle ground. But we've been at this for a while; I think it would be good for us to take a break. Are you hungry?"

"You could say that." I've been hungry for who knows how long, actually, but I've been too interested in this to say anything.

"Good, if you weren't I'd be worried. Follow me. We'll get you something to eat."

She takes me to the dining area and we get some calamari dish, which, like Gardner, vaguely reminds me of cannibalism. But oh well.

"Can you tell me what my 'assigned position' is?" I've been wondering ever since that meeting.

"You are to be with Shepard personally."

I am? Cool! "Am I the only one?"

"No. That young man with the red hair will be accompanying you." Oh, that 16-year old you terrified. Fun.

We finish up our meals and she leads me to my room, which looks suspiciously similar to the one on the ship, except it has a private bathroom. She leaves me, but this time letting me know that I'm free to wander the station as long as I don't touch anything. Which doesn't really matter right now because I'm just going to take a shower. Ah, nothing like a shower to help you feel more at home.

So the first training session went pretty well, really. I didn't get yelled at or break anything, and it was actually very interesting. Though I guess it is kind of like learning how to use The Force, which would also be pretty damn interesting. I…still miss my family though. I'm not crying anymore though. Nope. No crying. Don't forget your motto. Crying never got anything done. And she did say we might get to go back someday.

I certainly hope so.

**(A/N: Right, so hopefully that explains a bit more of what's going on. And everyone loves a good conspiracy, right?**

**Read, review, all that jazz. I'll probably have a bit of a timeskip over the rest of the training, unless you guys find it extremely interesting and simply must read about someone throwing chairs into walls.**

**Next up…I'm not sure really. Something awesome though, you can be sure of that.)**


	4. In Which Embarrassment Occurs

So then, let's see what we've got here. Three mechs giving suppressive fire straight ahead, and two more trying to flank me on both sides. Check ammo…Damn, when she said she wasn't giving me much I was still expecting more than one clip. Ah well. Pistols aren't particularly useful anyway.

Those guys on the left are closing in surprisingly fast. Better pop a singularity to keep them in place for the time being. Stay in cover…

Right, so they're taken care of for a few seconds. Now to deal with these on the right. Let's go with a throw. BAM! God I love that noise. The singularity hasn't worn off yet, so how about a warp to finish them off. Probably should shift cover first to avoid the blast…

Quickly roll! Quickly! Ok, warp over the shoulder, duck back under. Another satisfying BOOM as the singularity explodes, flinging metal body parts all over the field. A leg from said explosion conveniently smacks one of those annoying suppressive mechs in the head, so that one's taken care of. Two more left. They've moved a bit closer now it looks like. How about…shockwave! Haven't tried that yet. Get an idea of where they are... Back down! Why didn't I notice my shields were down? Should check that more often. I think they're a bit the left… Bring the energy to arm…

Crap, missed. It shook them, but didn't knock them over. Is it me or is shockwave hard to aim? Well, since they're so hard to hit, how about bringing them a bit closer…

Quick pull from one arm and a warp from the other. BOOM! I love how warp makes other powers explode. Just love it.

I stand up to observe the carnage. Ah, metal body parts strewn all over a rubber bullet ridden battlefield. Lovely. Check ammo…Oh, I didn't shoot. Perfect! Guns didn't even cross my mind. She'll be pleased, I'm sure.

"Excellent work 2," she says over the intercom. "Stay right there, we have someone who wants to meet you." Oh? A friend of yours, Madam? That's unusual. How long has it been now? Four months? It doesn't feel like that long. God I'm hungry.

I bend down to inspect a disembodied arm more closely. I swear, this technology will never cease to amaze me. Especially when I get to meet Legion! Oh, I am looking forward to that so much. I wonder how-Ow! Shit! That's probably the biggest drawback of being a biotic, the static electricity. And considering most of the stuff I'm around now is metal…Yeah, not fun.

The door opens and I hear the remnants of a conversation, "Really all she lacks at this point is-" That's…not what I was expecting. I stand up to get a look at Madam and her friend.

A very old and worn looking military fellow. Seems like he's seen his fair share of battles, judging from that scar on the right side of his face. "2, this is Admiral Hackett. He has been watching your progress and is very interested in your abilities. Hackett, this is 2."

Oh! Hackett! Cool! I don't think we ever actually see him in game. Damn he looks rough. That was rude. Crap. I should probably get a bit closer so I'm not halfway across the room from him.

He extends his hand and says, "It's an honor to meet you, miss…2?" Alright, you better stop calling me that.

"Brenna, actually." I shake his hand. Very leathery. I never really pictured Hackett to look like this. I mean, I knew he'd be old, of course, I just didn't expect him to look so…militaryish. Though I probably should've, since he is an admiral. "And it's nice to meet you too." No! Not nice! He said honor! I should've said honor. Why did he say honor anyway? I'm not nearly as prestigious as he is.

"We sent him footage of your performances, but he decided he needed to see you in person. We asked him if he could have you work with someone in order to gain some real-life battle experience, and he has someone in mind you may have heard of." And would this 'someone' be Shepard, Madam? Really, if you were any more obvious you'd just come out and tell him I'm from the past. Y'know, saying you're from the past is not nearly as cool as saying you're from the future. Because you already know what happened in the past, unless you go back farther than documented history. You don't know what the future is like, because it's the future for god's sake! Although I guess being from an alternate universe past in which the future is a video game series is pretty cool too…I'm starting to confuse myself now.

"Tell me, have you heard of Commander Shepard?" Oh sure, I've heard of her, Hackett. In fact, I might've lived her life multiple times through, but I guess that's too much information.

"Wasn't she the one on Akuze?" Ah, playing dumb. I'm gonna have to get used to that.

"Yes, I'm still shocked she survived every time I hear the story." He seems pleased that I know her, so I guess I earned some points there.

Can we speed this up a bit? I'm hungry. "What about her?"

Madam's turn this time. "There are some very credible rumors going about that she is about to become the first human spectre. Hackett here thinks that you would make an excellent addition to her crew." Alright, excited face on. Though I am pretty excited to finally get out of this white hellscape.

"Really? But I'm not-I mean, I'm not that well trained. And I-wow, a spectre. Really?" I hope that wasn't too cheesy. It's hard to act excited without seeming sarcastic.

Hackett chuckles at what seems to be my youthful exuberance and says, "Yes, really. I'm even more confident you would be a valuable asset to her and her team after seeing what you can do here in front of me." He turns to Madam, "When can we leave?"

"As soon as you like, Admiral."

"Good." Damn, that was fast. He looks back at me. "Can you be ready in an hour?"

"I uh…Yeah. I'll just need to grab some food…"

"I'll meet you in front of the ship in an hour then." He gives a farewell nod to Madam, who returns the gesture, and he then leaves the room.

Madam takes the opportunity to explain what's happened so far, "Eden Prime was attacked yesterday, and Shepard is already on the citadel. By the time you two get there, she very well may be a spectre already." Oh! Dang, things are moving fast. Who does she mean by…oh.

"You mean me and the redhead?"

"Yes." She smiles slightly and continues, "The boy will be joining you on Hackett's ship."

"Let's get you something to eat, and then Markus has something he's been working on for you. I think you're going to like it." Rightio then. But food first, surprises later.

I stuff a sandwich of some sort in my face (I don't recognize the meat as anything from Earth) and follow Madam to…wherever Markus has been for the past four months. Really, I haven't seen him or any of the other 'test subjects' at all ever since that briefing. Just Madam. And I'm surprised that I've kept my sanity, what with her being the only being I've interacted with for four months.

We enter a big…research room? I guess? It's certainly sciencey looking. It's got various tables in it, with Markus occupying one in the back. Is that an armor stand next to him?

Madam leads me over to him, and…that definitely is some armor next to him. And some pretty cool looking armor at that. The pattern reminds me of Garrus's c-sec armor, only it's dark green where the blue would be. And it's for humans, obviously.

Markus looks up from whatever he was doing, and I guess notices how I'm looking at the armor because he smiles and asks, "You like it?"

"Definitely."

Looking very pleased with himself, he starts to explain the finer points of the design. "Now, I know freedom of movement is important for your biotics, so I used a lighter material than most armor. But it's still just as strong as a medium-weight, just a lot more expensive."

"I'm not going to have to pay you back, am I?"

He chuckles and replies no. "There're also biotic amplifiers built into it, so that should be useful…Oh, and one more thing. I think I left it in here…" He starts going through drawers until he pulls out a matching visor, like the one you can get for Shepard in the second game. "Madam told me you find it helpful if you have some music going in your head, so I figured this would help with that." Oh! Cool! Battle music! "And of course it'll help with targeting and everything."

I start to thank him, but as soon as I open my mouth there's another voice coming from behind me, "Ah! Getting ready for your big adventure, I see."

I turn to see William behind me, looking as grandpa-like as ever. He seems very proud of…me? That's a bit strange. All these people treat me like a project that was given the blue ribbon at the science fair. Not that I've ever been in a science fair, but still. Except Markus. Even when he tries to be cheerful, I still detect pity in his expressions. I get the feeling he doesn't like his employer's methods. I can't say I like them either.

Speaking of Markus...I look at him and ask, "Can I try it on?"

"Of course!"

…

…

Damn this looks awesome.

I managed to get it on ok by myself, and now I'm looking in the mirror. Heh. And it feels so light! Much lighter than I thought it would be. And it doesn't hinder movement at all, so that's nice.

The visor's cool too, though I think it'll take some getting used to. I was also given an omni-tool that I can use to upload music to it, so that's nice. Well, technically Madam gave it to me so she would have a way to communicate with me, but I tend to think of it as more of a really fancy iPod. Probably because I wish I didn't have to keep in touch with her.

"Are you almost done in there?" Oh shush. She can't even let me out of her sight for a few minutes.

"Coming." I step outside to see Hackett waiting alongside Madam and the two men. Was I really in there that long? I guess I did have some trouble figuring out what connected where, but I didn't think it was long enough for him to come looking for me. That redheaded guy is also here, and it looks like he's gotten some armor too.

Markus starts inspecting my armor, making sure all the latches are attached properly and that sort of thing. He then steps back to observe his handiwork. "Does it feel ok? Walk up and down the room for me. Is it chafing anywhere?" I remain silent and do as he says. I'm suddenly trying on a pair of shoes, apparently.

"It feels fine," I say as I'm walking back. William is just beaming with pride, and Hackett seems very satisfied himself. Once again, I feel like an object.

"Right then," Hackett says, "you're ready to leave now?"

"Yep."

Madam leads us all to Hackett's ship, and all the way Markus can't seem to stop telling me all about the armor, what 'inspired' him to do this and that. Really, Markus, you're a nice guy. But you get way too excited about armor.

The airlock opens as Hackett and us two young'uns step inside. I look back to see Markus waving cheerfully beside the no-nonsense Madam and the proud grandfather. I wave back, the door closes, and I'm left noticing how not-white everything is now.

…

…

The trip was rather uneventful. I managed to get the redhead's name (which is Kevin), but after that he remained silent. Ah well. I'm not much of a conversationalist so I didn't bother after that. Anyway, we just arrived at the Citadel and after looking in awe at it for a few seconds, Hackett rushes us into the airlock. He says he wants to get to the tower quickly to see Shepard's spectreication. Well, obviously I was paraphrasing there, but never mind.

We speed-walk to the elevator that leads to the tower, hop inside, push the button (Frank), and then listen to the obligatory news blip about Nirali Bhatia wanting to be a chef. You'd think elevator technology would've advanced enough to keep up with the massive scale of buildings now. And this time there isn't the excuse of it being a loading screen, it's just slow for no reason.

The door opens with a quiet whoosh, and we resume speed-walking up the massive amounts of stairs. It looks like everyone's gathered up at the top…Shit! It's starting!

"Run!" Right, good plan Hackett. We start running, though Hackett can't keep up with our pace and falls behind somewhat. Almost…

"Commander Shepard – step forward." Whew! Just in time. I should probably just hang back by this tree here until it's over. Wouldn't want to ruin it by busting in Leeroy style. Actually, that would be pretty awesome…One minute humanity's joining the spectre ranks, the next some crazy teenager runs up from behind screaming 'LEEEEEROOOOOY JEEENKIIINSS', tackles Shepard and they both crash into the glass below. Yeah, that would almost be worth it. Except the part where Madam smashes my head into a wall for ruining everything. Still, it's fun to think about. I could maybe use biotics to help give me a boost to make sure we land in the glass. Hey, does that work? I wonder. I remember Samara using them to semi-fly Iron Man style, so…

Oh, looks like I've daydreamed the ceremony away. Eh, I've seen it before anyway. Anderson and Udina exit the fancy platform first, with Shepard still talking to her squad mates…It…it looks like Garrus and Kaidan. Garrus! I'll have to resist the urge to giggle uncontrollably when Shepard comes over here with him. That might be considered suspicious and/or just plain freaky. Anderson tries to come over and speak with Hackett, but Udina insists that there are 'more important matters to attend to'. Sorry Anderson! I know, I hate Udina too. Don't worry, hopefully you'll get to punch him in the face later.

Hackett moves in front of both of us as Shepard walks off the platform and folds his hands behind his back. Let's see, what kind of Shepard is this…brown hair in a tight bun, blue eyes. She certainly looks better than my Shepard, though mine is basically just the default with different hair. Ah well. She shakes hands with Hackett, and they say…stuff. I'm busy looking at Garrus, since he hasn't noticed me yet. Turians look…kind of scary, actually. Very hard and scaly, with those beady little eyes and huge mandibles. Crap, he noticed me staring at him. Avert eyes! Right, so I've probably already weirded him out. Shit. Is it me or does my face feel hot?...Oh god no.

"And who's this?" Shepard asks, looking at me and Kevin in turn.

"These," Hackett puts a hand on either of our backs and brings us forward, "are the newest members of your squad." For the love of god, why did you have to bring me forward? Now everyone's looking at me. Crap. Just…just look at Shepard. That's where you're supposed to be looking anyway. And they're looking at Kevin too, so it's not as bad. She seems surprised. I probably would be too in her situation.

"…Sir?" That doesn't sound good. Come on Hackett, give her one hell of a sales pitch!

"I'm serious. I know they're young, but trust me, they've got what it takes to be spectres themselves." Whoa, hold on there. You don't want to go overboard with the exaggeration. Shepard still looks skeptical. I'm not buying it either.

"And they aren't just ordinary soldiers either. He's got tech knowledge, and she's a fully trained biotic." Again, a bit too much exaggeration. Fully trained? I've never even been in real combat! You're loading way too many expectations on my shoulders. You might even say…they're GREAT expectations! Bah dum bum ksh, thank you! I'll be here all week!

Shepard just raises an eyebrow at him. Oh Hackett, don't mess this up. Please. "I'll send videos of their training to you, and you can test them out yourself before you bring them into combat. If you don't like them, I'll take them right back. Deal?"

She chuckles, shakes her head and says, "Alright, deal. But they better be good."

Hackett smiles and replies, "Don't worry. I wouldn't give you children if I didn't think they could make it" Hey, I'm not-oh never mind, I am a child. Forget I said anything.

Kevin and I are both given a little nudge from Hackett, who says to us, "Go on then, introduce yourselves." Oh, right.

"I'm Kevin Hatchett." That is an awesome name. Really. All you need to do is carry a hatchet with you instead of a knife to automatically be awesome. You wouldn't even have to use it, just have it there to twirl around and be awesome with.

Oh, my turn now. "Brenna ******." I really hope my face doesn't look as red as it feels, because if it does then I'm surprised no one's asked me if I have a fever yet.

Shepard smiles gently and says, "Pleased to meet the two of you." At least this Shepard isn't a jerk. Hoo boy, a renegade Shepard would not be fun to be around.

"Well then, I have a meeting to get to. They're all yours, Shepard." What? No!...I guess he has to leave eventually though. I just feel very vulnerable right now, what with the first human spectre and the world's most awesome turian standing in front of me. Ah well. Bye Hackett!

Hackett leaves, and for the first time I notice Kevin's blushing like a maniac too. Maniacs aren't really known for blushing though, so that isn't really an accurate comparison…

"Right then you two, follow me." No explaining where we're going? Alright then, I have a feeling of where we're headed anyway.

We both fall behind the other two in Shepard's squad and quietly follow her into the elevator. And some more following, and a bit more following…I'm really doing my best to stay out of Garrus's view, mainly because I don't think I could handle seeing his face right now. It's bad enough that he's right in front of me, but I really don't need him looking at me. That…would be fangirlish-giggle inducing. Really, this is just pathetic. I can't stop thinking about his romance…God it feels so wrong right now. Sure, it was ok when he was a pixilated character on a screen, but now? Now he's real, and it feels so wrong to know what could happen if Shepard decides to pursue him. And the fact that I'm a teenager. Dear lord, I really was too young to play Mass Effect. I was what, 12? Hell, maybe even 11. That's just wrong. A 12 year old does not need to see the romance cutscene between Shepard and Kaidan. Holy crap, Kaidan's here too. I'd forgotten. I always killed him on Virmire. Oh shit! Virmire! God damn you Madam! You're saying I'm not allowed to save a life for fear of going against some fucking plan? Screw you!

...Ok, calm down. Let's not get irrational here. Am I hormonal? I must be. Yeah, I'm just getting worked up because of hormones. There's plenty of time to figure out what to do. Virmire's a long way away. Right now just focus on avoiding Garrus as much as possible.

Rightio then, so my inner rantings have managed to occupy me long enough for us to get to the Normandy. Shepard's talking to Anderson about some stuff, but in the meantime, look at this ship! It's much cooler than the other ones I've been riding around in so far. The shape, the colors, the big ass NORMANDY written on the side…Yep, everything about this ship just screams 'Spectre aboard! Ass kicking imminent!' Kevin looks pretty into it too. I haven't really tried to talk with him much…Ah well; there'll be plenty of time for that on the ship.

"Have you acquired some fans?" Oh Udina. How much I hate you. Everyone hates you, really. And you seem quite content with that.

"No, they're new members of my squad." She considers us part of the squad already? Great! I guess she trusts Hackett enough to-

"I have a meeting to get to; Captain Anderson can answer any questions you might have." You even interrupt my thoughts you're so rude! I can't wait until you get punched in the face.

And now Shepard's asking Anderson about what happened with Saren. Should I be pretending to pay attention now? Nah, I don't think I'm expected to listen to this. Even if I am supposed to listen, no one's looking at me anyway. Hmm…

I step away from the railing to get a look at the giant platform we're on. It's almost like a runway. Very big. I guess…Nobody's noticed me yet. And I don't think I'll get a chance to test this out again anytime soon.

Right then. Get some music…let's go with Daft Punk this time. Slight headache…Bring it to your legs this time. Allll the way down. Both legs. There we go. Now, what happens if I start running?

…

How did I get over here? I'm on the other end of the platform now. Wasn't I just over by Shepard? And why are they all staring at me?

Just…walk back. Quietly. Make yourself as small as possible. That's it. Look at the ground, don't notice them gawking at you.

Right, so that might've been a charge I just did there. Not sure though. Everything just got blurry and then suddenly I'm over there and they're looking at me like I just…charged…randomly…

How did that work so well anyway? Hell, how has all the training worked so well? I've only been in training for four months, how the hell am I so proficient?

And…where'd my glasses go?

…

Oh…I get it…

If they can give me better eyes and biotics, there's no telling what they did to how my brain functions. Maybe they altered my brain so I could grasp the concepts better? No, that's just stupid. Just understanding the concept of charge is different from actually charging. Still…

"What was that?" Shepard asks. Oh, I'm over here now. I was busy contemplating…things…She looks freaked out. I am too, sort of. I guess.

"A charge? I think? Is that what it looked like to you?" Really, I'm not sure what I just did. I figure she might've at least seen what I did.

"Why did you do that?"

Well, I…"I wanted to see what would happen. I hadn't tried it before, so…" She's not convinced. Crap. "I mean, this place is perfect for it, and I don't know when I'll get another chance. Besides, nothing got hurt, right?" Don't look at Garrus. For the love of god don't look at Garrus. Or Kaidan. Though I don't really care about Kaidan all that much.

Shepard sighs and says, "Don't use biotics outside of battle like that."

"Yes ma'am." That sounded very timid. Probably because I'm feeling very timid right now.

Shepard tells Anderson that she should go, and proceeds into the airlock with a firm grip on my arm. Stupid 'Decontamination in progress' voice, taunting me with your decontamination. I can feel everyone's eyes boring into the back of my skull. God damn it.

"Kevin, follow me to your quarters. The rest of you are dismissed." Thank god.

The door opens and the other squad members go their separate ways, with Shepard leading us into the elevator, still refusing to let go of my arm.

She takes us down to the floor with private rooms (a new addition), and finally releases me when we reach my assigned room.

"This is where you'll be staying. Try not to blow it up, alright?" She seems to be in a better mood now. Whew.

"Yes'm." She smiles, and shows Kevin his, which happens to be right next to mine. Coincidence? Probably. But I've gotten paranoid now that somehow Madam has a hand in everything that happens. I wonder where all the other 'guides' have ended up…

I go inside my room, half expecting it to be identical to the one in Skyrim. I got way too used to everything being white. All this navy is disorienting at first. So we've got a little terminal thing, I guess for private calls and things, though Madam made me very aware that she would only call me on my omni-tool, and I'm supposed to only call her with the omni-tool, not with a terminal. And a bed, and a desk. Cozy. I can't expect much though; I am just some random kid Hackett threw at her. Hmm…I should probably ask for a uniform or something to change into so I can get out of this armor. They probably don't have them in my size though…Maybe they do, I don't know. I walk to the door, open it and-

Oh! Kevin!

"We need to talk."

Oh.

That doesn't sound good.

**(A/N: Bum bum BUUUUM! Well, this chapter kind of ran away from me, sooo…**

**Yes, I seem a bit overpowered. Yes, that will be explained. No, I don't just 'have a gift' for biotics. And yes, Madam is creepy. And also yes, I know we see Hackett ingame in DLC, but I don't have any DLC as of yet.**

**So then, reviews are nice. Seriously, they're a great motivator. Even if it's just a little 'Nice story', that's better than nothing.**

**Anyway, enough begging. Next up, conversations! With Kevin! And other people.**

**Also, if you got the MST3000 reference, you rock. Heck, if you even know what MST3000 is you rock.)**


	5. In Which Words are Exchanged

"O…kay. Can it wait for a bit?" I'm in the middle of some calibrations.

"Not really." Oh. Well fine, don't laugh at my subtle reference. See if I care.

I stand aside to let him in, and close the door behind him. "You should probably lock it." Yeah, I should, shouldn't I? How do you…probably the button that says 'LOCK' on it. Right then.

"So something tells me you aren't here for a friendly chat." Stating the obvious. Always the best way to start a conversation.

He shakes his head and sits on the bed. "Not exactly." He looks up at me with a slightly worried expression. "I'll be blunt. I think they've done something to us."

"By 'they', do you mean Madam and her friends?"

He nods and answers in the affirmative. "I mean, everything I've learned in those four months…I didn't think it was possible to become an expert in 22nd century technology in that amount of time."

Expert? Really? "You really think you're good enough to call yourself an expert?"

He gets up and starts pacing. "I don't know. All I know is they had to change my trainer twice because I advanced beyond what they could teach me. And that charge you did back there, you said you've never done it before?"

Well…"Yeah…"

"Were you ever told how to charge? Given any instruction on it whatsoever?"

"No…"

He stops and looks at me directly. "Doesn't that seem at least a little bit strange to you?"

"Of course it seems strange. Where is this going anyway?"

He walks towards me, stopping a few feet in front of me. Damn he's tall. Actually he's probably average, I'm just short. "Where I'm going is I think they've done something to how our brains work, or at least to how we learn things."

"Ok, so we learn things faster. I'd already kind of picked up on that myself." Honestly, this isn't anything new.

"But it's not just that!" He starts nervously pacing again. "I'm…I'm starting to forget things."

That's not optimal. "Like things you learned in training?"

"No, things from before I got here. Yesterday it took me ten minutes to remember my brother's name. But the even stranger part is," he stops and looks at me once again, "everything about this world is perfectly clear. I remember all the events from the games in great detail, and my training is flawlessly preserved in my brain as well."

…What? "Look," he says desperately, "just try to remember something from before. Something that should be obvious, like the names of your parents." Ok then. Mom's name was…uh…it started with…a C? No, I think it was an S…or…is that Dad's?

...

Oh my god.

"You can't, can you?" He sighs and pulls out his omni-tool. "I spent the entire ride to the Citadel trying to remember people and things from before and writing them down on this. There's a notepad feature, have you found that yet?"

"I…I haven't played with it much yet, I just…" Come on, what was her name! Think! I couldn't have forgotten already!

"I'm sorry about telling you all this so suddenly, but I wanted to make sure it wasn't just me." It was…it started with an R I think…Did he just put his hand on my shoulder? I look up to his comforting expression. "Writing things down helps greatly, don't worry. We should both probably review important things daily to keep them fresh in our minds."

Right…Gah! What's that noi-oooh, someone's knocking on the door. Looks like it startled Kevin too. Better go open it.

And Shepard's standing there. Great. I see she changed out of her armor already. "Is something wrong? You look upset."

"I'm fine." Not really, but we can't let her know that now can we?

She doesn't look convinced, but thankfully she doesn't push the subject. "I found some uniforms for the two of you, since I figured you wouldn't want to walk around in armor all the time." Right. Good.

Kevin walks up and takes his clothes from Shepard. "Thanks." He looks at me and smiles reassuringly. "I should go then." Yeah, I'll just…yeah. He goes into his room, and Shepard looks at me again with a concerned expression.

"Are you sure you're ok?"

"Shepard, I'm fine." …Oh! "Crap! Commander! Sorry, I just- sorry!"

She chuckles and says, "Don't worry about it. I'm not strict." That's good. If you were renegade I'd probably be screwed right now. She holds out the clothes and says, "If you ever need someone to talk to, feel free to come to me, ok?" She seems…a bit too nice. Has she made herself my unofficial mother now?

I take the clothes and say hurriedly, "Ok, thanks." Close the door. Quickly now.

Whew. I let out a sigh of relief, throw the clothes on the bed and begin trying to figure out how best to get this thing off me.

…

…

Well, I managed to change ok, and I remembered the names of all my family members and wrote them down. I also put a description by each of their names in case one day I wake up and forget what my mom's hair color was or something like that. How long have I been at this…30 minutes? Just for names and descriptions? Shit. And I haven't even started on people I knew outside of my family. Though every time I remembered, I kept getting distracted. Is it me or does my mind seem fuzzy?

Where's that annoying beeping…my omni-tool? Let's see, save notes, exit…Oh, I have a message. From Madam. Lovely. Open…Well, at least it's text. I'd prefer not to hear her voice again for some time. Right then, it reads:

_Subject 2,_

_Contained in this message is your cover history and ID. The ID will be downloaded onto your omni-tool after opening this message. As soon as you receive this you must memorize your background and then delete this message. Your history is as follows:_

_You were born on Earth on June 3__rd__, year 2169. You had an average life with your mother (Erika) and father (Robert), who homeschooled you for your entire life. When you turned 11 your biotic abilities became apparent, and you were sent to us to receive your biotic implants. Unfortunately, shortly after you obtained your implants, your parents were killed in a traffic accident. You remained with us to train your biotics, and within three years you were ready to be sent out into the field. This is where we are at now._

_You are to refer to us as only 'The Organization'. Make sure that Therum is Shepard's first destination._

_Good luck._

Huh. Well then. Guess I should read the history bit a few times through.

…

Right, let's see how much I remember. I was born on Earth on June 3rd, 2169. Average life with parents, homeschooled, got implants at 11 from 'The Organization'. Parents died in traffic, stayed with creepy doctors to train, recently became ready to actually fight…

Did I just memorize that in just one read? Yet I can't remember the names of my parents without thinking about it for ten minutes? Something's definitely wrong here.

Alright, get up. Gah, I need a walk to burn off this sugar rush feeling. Open the door (whoosh!), and…Kevin's door is locked. Ah well, I think I've have enough revelations from him for one day. Let's see, what floor should I check out first…Probably not the one with the Mako, but the one with Kaidan on it has a lot of people on it, all of which recently saw me paraded through the ship by the arm. Of course, it's not a game anymore, so Garrus doesn't HAVE to calibrate the Mako all the time. He could be eating for all I know. Hey, if this is a human ship and he just joined Shepard…recently, what will he eat? I can't imagine human ships stocking up on dextro-amino foods, considering the only species that eat them are turians and quarians. Anyway, I'll just go to that floor and quietly sprint to the drive core. Because I have a feeling seeing that when it's real will be incredibly awesome.

Rightio then, which button…Ah! Here we go.

Great, I have Still Alive in my head now. Damn it, I never got to play co-op in Portal 2! Now I'll never know how P-Body and Atlas save science! Curse you, Madam!...I wonder if there are even any 360s around anymore, let alone hard copies of Portal. Maybe there's an updated version for 22nd century technology? Eh, probably not. It is almost 200 years old. Hey, how old would I technically be anyway? Born in 1997, now it's 2183…I can't do that in my head. I do have an omni-tool though, which hopefully has a calculator…

Wait…

If I'm forgetting names of family members, how am I remembering video games? Why am I even forgetting things anyway?

The door's opening! Crap! I wasn't done with my internal monologue! Gah…What'd I come down here for again? Oh, right, drive core. Got it. Luckily Garrus isn't at his assigned post. Not that it would matter really, since he would have his back to me, but the less I see him the fewer chances for me to start giggling in a creepy fashion. The drive core was behind the elevator if I'm not mistaken…Ah! Lovely. Another whoosh, and…

Holy…

Well, I was right about it being incredibly awesome.

Just look at this thing! It's huge! And glowing too, which is always a plus. Let's see, where can I stand where I won't be noticed…There's this corner right by the door, obviously, but I kind of want to get closer. And if someone comes through the door then I'm screwed. I could probably get away with leaning on the railing by the wall. Adams is in the middle of the railing, but he looks busy with some control panel thing. Quietly walk, quietly…

Made it. Damn this is huge! I think it's bigger than normal cores, right? About twice the size I believe…How do I even know that? That's some obscure fact that was probably only mentioned in the codex. And I think Tali mentions it too…Again, how do I remember that? Gah. Tali. She should be down here, shouldn't she? Gawking at the drive core and so forth? Ah well, 'tis for the best she isn't. I don't feel like talking right now. Though I never feel like talking, really, being horribly shy and all. I just went way off track, didn't I? Damn it, I keep getting distracted from the whole memory loss thing. Maybe because I'm sick of thinking about it after spending thirty minutes trying to remember four names. Right then, so I'm forgetting family names, but not Portal, and on top of that I remember everything about this universe in great detail. Creepy. And I learn things fast, so…

Hmm…Learning things fast would probably be a big plus with the fiddle. I memorized my background after reading it once, so I could probably memorize pieces crazy fast too. That would be awesome. I wonder…would it help with actually playing them too? Maybe I could finally play Orange Blossom Special that way. But we're leaving the Citadel! Damn it, where else am I going to find a music store? We'll be back eventually, I suppose, but still. I don't think it's for a while…

What…what was I thinking about? Something about memory…Or was it about forgetting? Maybe…fruit loops? No, I never had fruit loops. Family names! And the fiddle, but that's not important right now. I'm forgetting family names. And something else. Was there something else? I don't know, maybe. I think…I'm having trouble concentrating…Shit, what's going on? Why can't I focus? And…my head's throbbing again.

Crap. Let the energy out, come on. There we go. Nice little flare.

"Are you ok?"

Shit! Who's- oh, Tali. Hi. Great, now my whipping around to look at her has her freaked out too. "Yeah, I'm fine." Oh come on, that was pathetic. I've got to learn how to 'fake it' better, because right now I suck. "Just a little flare up, that's all."

"You sure? You don't look so good." She looks like she's inspecting me. Oh god, not more inspecting. I refuse to be treated like that anymore.

"I'm sure! Quit looking at me like that!" Oh shit, I think I hurt her feelings. Or offended her. Can't tell. I sigh, saying "Sorry, harsher than I meant to…uh…I just…don't take well to inspections." If I could get out one sentence without any pauses, that would be a miracle.

"Right…" I get the feeling she's raising an eyebrow right now. "You do look a bit ill though." Yes, well, if you started forgetting who your parents were, you would probably look a bit ill yourself. "Oh, sorry, my name is Tali'Zorah nar Rayya. And you are?"

"Brenna." Ok then, so now I need to make a dash for the nearest exit.

Tali steps up to the railing beside me, looking at the drive core. "It's beautiful, isn't it? It's amazing they managed to fit it into such a small ship." Crap, she's intent on making a conversation out of this. Though…Gah, I can't just walk out with no reason. That'd be suspicious. And rude.

"Yes, well, every member of the human race dreams of being able to stuff big things into little things. Big drive cores into little ships, outrageously big sandwiches into mouths and so on." My horribly poisoned mind can think of one other example, but it's a bit…nasty.

She chuckles and looks at me questioningly. "Aren't you a bit young to be a member of the Alliance?" Probably. Really I'm surprised Shepard managed to find a uniform that fit me.

"Yeah, but that's why I'm not a member of the Alliance." Ambiguous answers for the win!

"Then why are you on an Alliance ship?"

"I could ask you the same thing." Alright, better give her a straight answer at this point. "Really I'm just here to follow Shepard and gain some combat experience."

"I see." She seems satisfied now at least. Time to make my escape.

"I should go." She nods and bids me farewell, and I exit the room. That wasn't so bad. I only offended her once, so that's nice. Let's see…I think I shall retreat to my room now. Had enough talking for one day I believe. I'll make my way to the elevator then. I start slapping my legs in time with a little tune I have in my head. Always some sort of music in my head. Never stops. Coming around the corner now, and-…

Shit.

Why does Garrus have to be waiting for the elevator? And why did I just HAVE to make noise so he'd notice me? God damn it. No, it makes sense, what with the universe out to get me and all. I'm flattered, really. Not only is one universe after me, but two! It's quite an honor.

So going back behind the corner now would be both suspicious and strange, so…I have to stand next to him waiting for the elevator now, don't I? Fuckin' hell. Alright, calm down. For the love of god he's just a person, don't get so worked up. You're not Shepard, you're fourteen, romancing him is out of the-Why did my brain just go there? No romance. Just…put it out of your mind. Dear god my brain really is messed up, isn't it? Just stand next to him, look at the door. That's it, focus on the door. Well, probably not that intently, because that also seems strange. Relax, calm down. Stop fidgeting with your hands. Right, ok. We're good. The door's opening, right. Ok. What floor is he going to anyway? Maybe if I wasn't so damn shy I'd have asked him. He's going in. Follow him quietly, there we go. And…he pushed the right button. Awesome.

"I'm guessing you've never seen a turian before." For fucks sake man, can't you just leave me be? No, no, he didn't do anything. I'm the one blushing furiously for no reason. God damn my fucking fangirlishness.

"Ah, no. That would be, uh, no." Curse these slow elevators!

He just chuckled. Well, I'm glad this is amusing for at least one of us. "It's ok for you to look at me, you know. I won't bite."

This elevator is going to be the death of me, I just know it. Keep your eyes on your feet and your mouth shut. Fucking hell, why am I making such a big deal out of this? Take a deep breath, let it out. Calm down. Rightio then. I need to stop thinking of him as a video game character. Blushing and almost squealing girlishly is out of the question. He's a fellow crewmember; I need to be able to look him in the eye….er, well, maybe not the eye just yet. Lift your head, there we go. Oh shit he's looking at me. Of course he's looking at me, I'm the one acting like a creeper. Not the exploding kind, though.

Huh. He does look pretty awesome, really. The facepaint, the visor, the…scaliness. And not to mention the voice. Yep, number one turian in my book. His mandibles are sort of flared…I think that equated to a smile? Probably? Hopefully, at least.

Ah! The door's opening. My salvation has arrived. "Uh, thanks. For letting me stare at you. In a slightly creepy fashion. Actually it was very creepy, wasn't it? Ah, anyway…Uh…yeah…" Well, at least I know I can stand next to him in an elevator without completely melting down. Valuable life skill right there.

"It's no problem. I'm fairly used to it." Say what?

"What?" That's right. I just thought 'say what', and then I SAID say what. Like a boss.

"The Citadel's a pretty popular tourist spot, a lot of which have never seen another species before. Granted, most of the reactions aren't as extreme as yours…" Right…

I step out of the elevator first, give a brief 'See ya' and power-walk to my room. Right, so I encountered Tali and Garrus, who I offended or creeped out respectively, and cut both conversations short to make a hasty retreat to my bunk. A successful outing, I'd say.

Hmm…Y'know, I don't think I've added any music to my visor yet. Let's see, Daft Punk, maybe a little Queen, uh…

Ooh, what's this band? 'Green Space Chickens'? The name alone is worth checking out. Very techno, as I would expect.

I might be doing this for a while…

**(A/N: Conversations. Fun to read, hard to write. Which is why this one took a while.**

**So in case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm pretty hopeless when it comes to Garrus. Really. When I first found out he was a romance option, I literally just sat there giggling for several minutes. That's how pathetic I am. So if you don't like Garrus…sorry. I'm trying to write on what I think I'd really do, and if I encountered the Vakarian, I probably would have a hard time not giggling like a creepy stalkerish person.**

**Anyway, next chapter…More meeting the crew? Most likely. I'm doing a lot of this improv, so…**

**Reviews are much appreciated. Seriously, if I hadn't gotten any reviews for that prologue I first put up, I probably wouldn't have made it this far. So thanks guys. Joo iz da bomb.**

**And a last minute update thing, there might not be another chapter for a while, due to school and such (yes, I have school now). So, until then.)**


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